Stardust Directs Cinematic Journey for the Ford 2011 Mustang

Directed by Stardust's Jake Banks, TV and Cinema
Spot for Team Detroit Fuses Seductive Camera Work and Aggressive
Type Treatments

Santa Monica, CA - May 3, 2010 - Bi-coastal creative production
studio Stardust was tapped by ad agency Team Detroit to launch the
new Ford 2011 Mustang with a gorgeously cinematic spot for TV and
cinema. Stardust's Jake Banks directed the live-action commercial,
titled "_PG." The spot highlights the 2011 Mustang's speed, bold
lines and fuel efficiency through seductive camera work, motion
type and an authentic aesthetic. The :30 version aired Wed., April
28th during American Idol on FOX, while the :60 premiered in
cinemas on April 30th.

Banks and his team at Stardust were chosen to produce "_PG"
because their ability to shoot, edit, animate and rock the visual
effects gave them the upper hand over the competition.

Said Team Detroit Executive Vice President, Group Creative
Director Eric McClellan, "Jake and Stardust have made an arresting
cinematic spot about an American icon. It's pretty hard to impress
Mustang people -- there's already so much love for this car -- but
when they see this, they're like 'Šthat's so cool.' Mustang has
always been an object of desire and deserves to be treated that
way. Jake gave us a look that is both connected to the car's roots
and makes it surprisingly new. The special sauce is the way the
spot's gorgeous visuals also punch out an important piece of news
-- 31 MPG, 305 horse power in a V6 engine -- and do so in a totally
organic way. The collaboration between Ford, Team Detroit and
Stardust has dropped something kick ass into the conversation."

Set to the soulful rock Band of Skulls track "Light Of The
Morning," the spot follows the 2011 Mustang through one of its
habitats, the urban jungle. Shots of the car captured in motion,
from rooftops and even as a reflection in a Chinese restaurant
window, are interchanged with views of the city environment. CG
type accented by gleaming light effects reinforces the Mustang's
"31 MPG" and its "Primal" and "Untamed" qualities. Close-up shots
of the car's interior reveal the Mustang's customization options,
such as the available Navigation System. The spot continues to play
with light. Reflections off skyscraper facades, flashes from the
Mustang's grill and hubcaps, and the blinding sun as the car exits
a tunnel give the commercial a lazy Sunday feel and compliments the
spot's earthy color palette.

"My goal was to capture the car as if it were a character we're
following through a story and to maintain a sense of rawness and
authenticity to the footage," said Banks. "Our concept was to
capture the car, as opposed to construct a series of shots. Team
Detroit didn't want another slick and glossy clichéd car spot and
were willing to push it creatively, which made working with the
brand team so fulfilling. The group that was pulled together, from
the agency, to my DP, editor, VFX and animation team, music and
sound folks, to the stunt drivers and type shoot crew -- everyone
was amazing and shared in the same creative vision."

Banks spent four days in March filming in various parts of San
Francisco, a location chosen for its ability to embody the urban
vibe of any city. The picture car shoot involved three 35mm ARRI
cameras operating simultaneously. These were attached to a Russian
Arm on a pursuit vehicle, on a motorcycle chase car, with a
wide-lens camera planted on rooftops to capture the footage below.
A Stardust team of 15 worked on the spot over the course of a month
and a half, with a lot of time spent in pre-production and upfront
during the concepting phase.

To give the typography a unique look, Banks opted for an old
fashioned type shoot, capturing natural light effects using
multiple lenses on 35mm film and then warping and deforming the
effects along with digital type in the 3D package Autodesk Maya.
"_PG" was finished on the 2011 Autodesk Flame.

Stardust's "_PG." spot for the 2011 Ford
Mustang

About Stardust Studios

Stardust is a visually driven production company with offices in
Santa Monica and New York that specializes in design, motion
graphics and live-action. Its collective of designers,
illustrators, animators, VFX artists, directors and filmmakers
continually redefine creativity for commercial, on-air, music video
and experiential projects. Led by Founder and Creative Director
Jake Banks, Stardust is characterized by an authentic voice and
willingness to experiment. The studio has worked with the globe's
top ad agencies and brands on projects for HP, Nike, Sony, AT&T,
Honda, Shell, Nissan, Ford, IBM, Nokia, Adidas, BMW, NYSE, LG and
Microsoft, among many others. For more information, please visit
stardust.tv or call Paul Abatemarco at 1-310-399-6047, or Mike
Eastwood at 1-212-334-7300.

Article Comments

deemarie ()
posted at 5:50AM Tue, 11 May 2010

Thanks so much for posting this article. Everyone who knows me, also knows how much I hate watching commercials ... Yet, I was glued to the TV when I first saw this one air. Not just because I own a 2007 silver Mustang (ok, I'm sure that was part of the reason), but also because of the sheer beauty of the commerical.